29th February, 2024
The UN World Food Programme (WFP) says Ukraine has donated more than 7,000 tonnes of wheat to feed one million people in Sudan for a month.
The in-kind donation – part of the ‘Grain from Ukraine’ humanitarian initiative launched by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy – arrived in the coastal city of Port Sudan and was loaded onto WFP trucks for emergency food distribution.
The UN agency is working around the clock to urgently deliver critical food assistance to families who are struggling with skyrocketing food insecurity as fighting between rival military forces in Sudan enters the 10th month.
“The humanitarian situation in Sudan is catastrophic, but we need to act now to stop it from spiralling further out of control,” Eddie Rowe, WFP’s Country Director in Sudan, said in a statement on Wednesday.
Staff are “working at pace to get food assistance into the hands of families that need it as quickly as possible”, he added.
The 7,600 tonnes of wheat flour will be provided to families, many of whom have fled their homes due to the fighting and are struggling every day to meet their food needs.
The shipment was made possible by the German Federal Foreign Office, which covered the entire €15 million operating costs, including the transportation of the wheat from Ukraine to Sudan and the implementation and distribution within the country.
It has arrived at a critical time as fighting continues to spread ahead of the lean season in May, when food typically becomes scarcer and hunger rises.
“This donation will enable WFP to support people whose lives have been completely upended by the war,” Rowe said, expressing gratitude to Ukraine and Germany for supporting the Sudanese people in their greatest hour of need.
Germany is WFP’s second largest donor and has been a steadfast supporter of its lifesaving work in Sudan, the agency said.
Last year, the German Government provided nearly €30 million to WFP operations in Sudan, ensuring vital food assistance reaches people trapped by conflict.
WFP has been warning of a looming hunger catastrophe in the country as the lean season approaches. Currently, nearly 18 million people face acute food insecurity, of which nearly five million are in emergency levels of hunger.
The UN agency has provided emergency food and nutrition support to around seven million people since the conflict began last April, yet needs continue to grow.
(NAN)